POSITIVELY FIFTH STREET

The World Series of Poker in Las Vegas draws all kinds of people. In 2000, it attracted novelist/poet/amateur poker player James McManus. There to write a magazine article, he risked his advance for a seat at The Table. The resulting book--his first nonfiction work--is an engaging portrait of the tournament from the inside. It's made all the more effective by the author's own reading. His voice has a touch of weariness that helps color passages about the almost endless hours at the poker table. Because McManus is a novelist, he has a strong sense of pacing. And because he is a poet, he is adept at effective word choice. Both are especially effective in the audio version of his book. R.C.G. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/SEP 03]